EA Sports Active Charity Bundles Up for Auction

post from The Wiire on 09 February 2010 12:51:00 AM. © The Wiire

Act fast for celebrity-signed Wii consoles

marchofdimeslogo

EA Sports recently teamed up with CharityBuzz to auction off celebrity-based Wii and EA Sports Active bundles to raise awareness for the March of Dimes charity.

EA Sports Active PR Manager Lisa Bruce spoke with us recently about the charity, and how EA Sports is getting involved in supporting the March of Dimes.

It started with an event held by EA Sports, called "Active for Life." Bruce says that they "had celebrities come in and create customized workouts and avatars. They would go to the system, recreate their avatar to look like them and choose their favorite workouts."

"That would then be saved onto a Wii that they autographed. So they would sign the Wii and say, 'I'm active for,' either family or whatever it was they chose to be active for."

These custom celebrity bundles are then placed in auctions on CharityBuzz.com, a website devoted to hosting auctions in support of various major charities. In this case, the charity EA Sports is supporting is the March of Dimes.

Fans of the celebrities can bid to win an autographed Wii console, which has the customized EA Sports Active avatar and workout personalized by that celebrity, along with copies of EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer, and EA Sports Active: More Workouts products.

odell

O'Dell is instrumental

The EA Sports Active for Life event was hosted by celebrity and March of Dimes spokeswoman Nancy O'Dell. O'Dell (left) also contributed her personalized auction package to the auctions. As Bruce puts it, her role in this event doesn't seem to end there.

"She's been a strong supporter of the March of Dimes for almost 12 years now. She's very passionate about it. It's a great cause, it's something that fits well with what we do with EA Sports Active."

Bruce adds that the charity is a nice tie-in to the EA Sports Active brand, and is a natural fit. "We really believe in the work they do, we think it's great."

EA Sports Active: More in 2010

It's no secret that EA Sports has seen runaway success with the "Active" brand. Bruce thinks the rationale behind "exer-gaming" made EA Sports Active the multi-million seller it is today.

"I think it really falls on the trend of interactive fitness, it's really popular right now. It's fairly accessible and convenient. For [less than] the cost of the gym membership compared to a Wii, it's becoming a viable option for people to work out now."

With two products having already seen release in 2010, EA Sports will no doubt jump ahead into 2010 with more titles in the Active brand. Bruce doesn't disagree with this notion.

"We have big plans for the franchise, and it is a franchise we're looking to expand with various products in 2010, so you'll have to stay tuned to see what we come out with."

Bid for a good cause

The EA Sports/CharityBuzz auctions won't be lasting much longer. In fact, the auctions end on February 10th.

With about 20 celebrity Wii packages to bid on, and proceeds going towards the great March of Dimes cause, we cannot encourage you more to go check out the auctions hosted on CharityBuzz before it's too late.

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http://thewiire.com/blog/post/6229-ea-sports-auctioning-wii-charity-bundles

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14-Year-Old Breaks Foot On Wii Fit Balance Board

post from The Wiire on 09 February 2010 12:46:00 AM. © The Wiire

UK doctor says Wii Balance Board to blame for increased Wii injuries

In a letter to the New England Medical Journal, Karen Eley of Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust details the case of a 14-year-old girl who fell off her Wii Fit Balance Board and fractured her foot.

Wii Fracture

As Eley describes it, "In the United Kingdom, a healthy 14-year-old girl presented to the emergency department at Horton General Hospital in Banbury (near Oxford), having sustained an injury to her right foot with associated difficulty in mobilization. She had been playing on her Wii Fit balance board and had fallen off, sustaining an inversion injury. (The Wii Fit replaces handheld controls with a pressure-sensitive board about 2 in. off the ground that lets the user participate in tricky games that can improve balance.)"

Eley also mentions a variety of other Wii-related injuries reported, including "traumatic hemothorax (from a fall while playing),4 dislocations, and head injuries (from being struck accidentally by a gaming partner)".

In the past we've had Wii-Knee, but fractured bones from Wii play take it to a whole new level.

Read The Full Article:
http://thewiire.com/blog/post/6227-14-year-old-breaks-foot-on-wii-fit-balance-boa
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LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars Announced

post from Video Games Loop on 09 February 2010 12:29:19 AM. © Video Games Loop

LucasArts and Traveller's Tales announced the development of LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars today.

The original LEGO Star Wars was released way back in 2005 and was a huge hit that spawned a sequel and several other games based on other movie franchises. LucasArts announced today that Traveller's Tales is working on a new installment in the franchise that I'm sure will be a big hit as well. The same team that worked on the original Star Wars games and the Indiana Jones franchise will be working on the new game. The 3rd game (4th overall) in the series will based on the animated series, The Clone Wars, and will include characters from both seasons. We can expect to play some new battle modes and an upgraded level builder in the new game. We will have the option to play as a Jedi or a Separatist with a bunch of new abilities.

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars will be released on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, DS, PC, and the PSP this Fall 2010.

News Source

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http://www.videogamesloop.com/lego-star-wars-iii-the-clone-wars-announced

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XBLA sale: Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Turtles in Time,
and more

XBLA sale: Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Turtles in Time, and more screenshot

Yesterday marked the beginning of a fighting game-themed Xbox LIVE deal of the week promo. Your months of waiting for Marvel vs. Capcom 2 to drop in price have finally paid off! It's now down ... five bucks. We'll take what we can get; years ago, $10 for MvC2 would have been a legendary find.

Already own the game? TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled is only $5, while Invincible Tiger: The Legend of Han Tao is down to $10. I'm still of the opinion that Turtles in Time is only good when the original 2D artwork is on full display. It's a nostalgia thing. If guys are going to be thrown at me, Mode 7 better be responsible.

Oh, and Darwinia+ is the Xbox LIVE Arcade game for this weekend. That's hitting on Wednesday and costs $15, in case you forgot.

Deal of the Week: A week of 3 fighting deals [Major Nelson]

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10 Glorious New Cars as Ferrari Races into Need
for Speed SHIFT video game - download now!

post from Gamezplay.org - Video game updates daily on 09 February 2010 02:00:31 AM. © Gamezplay.org - Video game updates daily

Ferrari Racing Pack Features 10 Glorious New Cars and Extended Career Mode Available Exclusively on...Read the full post at www.gamezplay.org use the search option if there is no link above... [...]

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ious-new-cars-as-ferrari-races.html

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